Cruise Ocean Voyage

Whether sailing between two seas or between two continents, we invite you on board to enjoy one of PONANT's extended Sea Voyages scheduled several times a year.

Sea lovers, dreamers, keen observers of the endless horizon are invited on these non-stop trips, which allow you to enjoy the benefits of our ships and share the lives of crews.

Over the following days, you can relax on deck, keep fit in the gym, enjoy the pool or the sauna ... Live in harmony with the sea! Share the rhythm of daily shipboard life with the crew, including experiencing the instruments and techniques of navigation from the bridge.

This is our invitation to rejuvenate away from the bustle of swirling cities … PONANT leisure and hospitality will be your everyday life!

Staterooms & Suites

LE LYRIAL

Fourth ship in this superb series loyal to the PONANT spirit, Le Lyrial like her sisterships embodies the subtle alliance between luxury, intimacy and wellbeing which is PONANT’s signature. The elegance of her exterior and interior lines and her intimate size (only 122 staterooms and suites) make this a rare and innovative yacht on the cruise market.

Interior DesignWe have been inspired by the destinations we visit and decided to create a subtle variation around a palette of blues. Ranging from the luminous delicate grey-blue of the Polar ice to splashes of the vivid turquoise blue found in Mediterranean coves, it also includes the blue light of the future pole star.

Port of call & excursions

Lisbon

Portugal’s capital city located on the banks of the Tagus, only a few kilometres from the Atlantic coast, is a city of exceptionally rich cultural diversity. At the mouth of the river harbour, impose two UNESCO World Heritage monuments, Jeronimos monastery and Belem tower. Sample the local delicacies such as the pasteis de nata—delicious creamy bakery flans. On the Alfama hillside, as you explore the Moorish streets, you may well hear sounds of fado drifting from the bars. Along Chiado’s elegant streets, big fashion labels will entice in you for a bit of luxury shopping.

3 November 2016▸18 November 2016 – At sea

Arrival 03/11/2016. Departure 18/11/2016.

During your day at sea, make the most of the many services and activities on board. Treat yourself to a moment of relaxation in the spa or stay in shape in the fitness centre. Depending on the season, let yourself be tempted by the swimming pool or a spot of sunbathing. This day without a port of call will also be an opportunity to enjoy the conferences or shows proposed on board, to do some shopping in the boutique or to meet the PONANT photographers in their dedicated space. As for lovers of the open sea, they will be able to visit the ship’s upper deck to admire the spectacle of the waves and perhaps be lucky enough to observe marine species. A truly enchanted interlude, combining comfort, rest and entertainment.

Montevideo

Disembarkation 19/11/2016 at 00H00 .

Perched on the far southern tip of Uruguay, Montevideo is a white city, and one of the loveliest capital cities of South America. Come and admire the beautiful historical remains dating from Spanish rule; you’ll find the most interesting within the Cuidad Vieja, formerly fortified, its old town dates from the 18th century. The best preserved are the cathedral and the former governmental palace of the Cabildo, both listed historical monuments. In the crook of a vast blue bay, the city is also blessed with beautiful beaches.

Formalities

We remind you that all our ships, with the exception of Le Ponant, have a doctor on board and medical facilities. However, these cannot, under any circumstances, be compared to any medical structure on land. Given the remote areas in which we will be sailing for a number of days, safety requirements mean that we are obliged to ask each passenger signing up for this program to provide us, no more than 45 days before departure, with a medical certificate from their GP, as well as the completed medical questionnaire received during registration.

The information below is current but subject to change at any time without advance notice from government authorities. Please consult your respective government agencies for visa and health information.

Passport valid for at least six (6) months beyond the completion of your trip. Passport must contain at least two completely clear, blank, unused visa pages for each visa required, not including any amendment pages. Visa pages with stains or ink from other pages in the passport are not usable. Guests who deviate from the scheduled embarkation or disembarkation port should research the foreign entry requirements for the port country. Due to government regulations, regrettably, Ponant will have to deny boarding to any guest who fails to obtain the appropriate travel documentation for this trip.

Guest(s) Lecturer(s)

François Bellec

Rear-Admiral (R) François Bellec directed the National Maritime Museum of Paris from 1980 ti 1998. He was active as President, Trustee or expert in maritime heritage an maritime history in many foundations, societies and museums, world exhibitions, UNESCO projects, and international journeys. He has written extensively in the fields of Maritime exploration and history and he was a conttributor to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History. He is a member of the French and Portguese Marine Academies and Vice-Président of the Paris Société de Géographie.

Christian Bex

Yann Queffélec

The son of author Henri Queffélec, a native of Brest in Brittany, Yann Queffélec published his first book in 1981. It was a biography of Béla Bartók, re-issued in October 2013. His first novel, Le Charme Noir about the Algerian War, attracted much attention, but he became a household name in 1985 with Les Noces Barbares. Translated all around the world, it earned him the prestigious Prix Goncourt. Yann Queffélec has since published forty books, including twenty-five novels. His Dictionnaire Amoureux de la Bretagne was published in May 2013 by Plon-Fayard.

A writer of passionate love stories and childhood dramas, Yann Queffélec is also a writer of the sea. It is his primary identity. It is present in every one of his works, either symbolically or directly, and of course in the coffee-table books he devoted to it with Philip Plisson.

A member of Les Écrivains de Marine, a corps of marine writers affiliated with the French Navy, and the biographer of Eric Tabarly, Yann Queffélec loves to write about the contemporary tragedies of the maritime world. From the sinking of the Estonia to the piracy along the Somalian coast, not to mention his commitment to revealing the truth about the sinking of the Bugaled Breizh trawler, his novels and stories tirelessly examine the misfortunes and glories of our time. He reminds us that the sea truly is our mirror.

This native of Brittany loves to travel, but his heart will always be in the Armor region where he grew up. As he himself wrote: “Ma Bretagne est d'Armor, le pays dans la mer” – My Brittany is the Armor region, the land in the sea.

Possibility of withdrawal in case of force majeure.

Important information

During these voyages, we are offering you an entirely sea-based crossing, there are no ports of call (except possibly for technical reasons), nor any onboard entertainment, and no transfers provided. Likewise, the catering is less elaborate than for other cruises. Although no entertainment is organized, you are free to discover what life is like aboard our ships by spending time with the crew who will be happy to share their experiences with you.

To facilitate embarkation, we suggest that you spend the night before departure in the city that your ship leaves from. Similarly, on the day of disembarkation we advise you to reserve a flight that leaves at the end of that day or the day after your arrival.

All administrative information is given for information only. Regarding health regulations and advice, you need to contact your doctor.

We remind you that all our ships, with the exception of Le Ponant, have a doctor on board and medical facilities. However, these cannot, under any circumstances, be compared to any medical structure on land. Given the remote areas in which we will be sailing for a number of days, safety requirements mean that we are obliged to ask each passenger signing up for this program to provide us, no more than 45 days before departure, with a medical certificate from their GP, as well as the completed medical questionnaire received during registration.

These cruises depend on there being a minimum number of passengers. Your voyage will therefore be reconfirmed 45 days prior to your departure at the latest.